1. Field of Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of provisioning telephony services. More specifically, the present invention relates to the field of provisioning telephone services for telephone subscribers who are not at home.
2. Background of the Invention
Telephone use permeates our daily lives, and access to telephone service is required to function productively in modern society. Most people take access to such telephone service for granted. Moreover, access to telephone service enables mobility, allowing people to travel away from home without losing the ability to communicate with others. Consequently, telephone companies strive to facilitate access to telephone service for people who travel away from home.
For example, calling cards allow people to make telephone calls for a fee from telephones that they do not own, for example, public pay telephones. To use a calling card, a caller dials a calling card access number. Once a connection is established, the caller is generally directed to enter a calling card number and security code, often referred to as a personal identification number (PIN). The calling card number corresponds to the billing account number for the caller. The PIN provides a mechanism for confirming that the caller has authority to use the calling card.
There are two varieties of calling cards: prepaid and non-prepaid. With pre-paid calling cards, a user pays a certain amount of money to a calling card provider. The amount is credited to the user's account prior to using the card. The user can then make fee calls using the card until the amount in the user's account is exhausted. Generally, prepaid calling cards are rechargeable. That is, more money can be paid into the calling card account to increase the amount in the account. In addition, prepaid calling cards usually charge a fixed cost per unit time, generally minutes.
There are several disadvantages to using prepaid calling cards. Because there is a fixed cost per minute, calls often cost more than they should. This is because prepaid calling cards do not take advantage of special rates, for example, lower rates offered for telephone calls made at night. Moreover, a conversation ends when the prepaid amount runs out, whether the caller desires to end the conversation or not. In addition, there is often a surcharge per call. The surcharge is an overhead charge that does not provide the caller with any additional connection time. Further, many prepaid calling cards do not require authorization prior to their use. Consequently, there is little protection when a prepaid calling card is lost or stolen.
A second type of calling card is a non-prepaid calling card. A non-prepaid calling card is generally provided by a telephone company to a user. When the user desires to make a telephone call, he or she dials a calling card access number provided by the telephone company and is prompted to enter a calling card number, a security code and the desired telephone number. Unlike prepaid calling cards however, there is no limit to the length of the conversation. Charges accrue for the entire length of the telephone call. The user is billed for telephone calls at the end of a period, generally a month.
Despite the unlimited calling time, there still remain disadvantages with non-prepaid calling cards. There is usually a surcharge added to each call. Moreover, the rates for non-prepaid calling cards are generally higher than for calls made from home or using prepaid calling cards.
A more significant disadvantage of using calling cards, whether prepaid or non-prepaid, and with conventional away-from-home telephone service in general, is that the subscriber does not have access to the services provisioned on his or her home telephone line. Consequently, when people travel, they do not have access to the services they have become accustomed to when using their home telephones.